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EVS ExtraCreditAssignment 2
EVS ExtraCreditAssignment 2
FC -0102-1
18 December 2022
Octopus Teacher. Through the course of the film, we follow filmmaker Craig Foster, as he builds
up an unusual but nonetheless beautiful friendship with an octopus, in the Kelp Forest of South
Africa, through the course of a year. We dive into the deep waters and unravel the role of water
as it brings two companion species closer to each other, while establishing a physical and
the angry Atlantic Ocean and diving in the shallow Kelp Forest. Growing up though, he
eventually got disconnected from nature and the waters. This did not bother him until his visit to
the Central Kalahari, where he filmed a group of tribal people. He observed how attuned the
trackers were well attuned with nature. Unable to reflect the same level of relationship with the
ecosystem, Foster felt like an Outsider. This reminded me of how the monkeys were considered
outsiders because they failed to mimic the behavior of the tamed monkeys who inhabited the
pahars initially (Govindrajan 91). This disconnection with nature brought him so much distress
that it worsened his intrapersonal relationship with himself and his family, his health and his
work life. It is evident that this notion of outsider-insider brings forth some sort of conflict, in
some cases purely because of the politically controlled coexistence of two species.
The only way Foster knew he could heal this was by going back to his childhood, back
into the ocean. It is then, he comes across this ‘alien-like’ species. What started off as mere
fascination and curiosity ended up reconstructing his beliefs. By visiting the octopus daily,
Foster was able to make her trust him. I believe that it is by personifying the octopus and
considering her as an equal, that Foster was able to build a real and meaningful connection with
her. This connection goes onto to reflect his healed relationship with nature.
Although his interactions with the octopus made him feel like an insider, Craig decides to
remain in the shoes of an outsider. While the shark hunts and attacks the octopus, he makes no
effort to help her out. He believes that his interference would break the balance of nature. I
believe that his decision to be a silent observer is fruitless. As his mere existence in the ocean is
an interference with the histories and subjectivities of the water itself (Linton and Budds 2).
Although, this inaction might still be a good way to dissolve conflicts between two species for
them to harmonically coexist within the ecosystem. As the octopus was able to complete her life
cycle ideally.
The documentary poses the question of how we navigate our way through nature, without
creating tension within the ecosystem, while sustaining a healthy relationship with it. Water here
maintains her role as the hydrosocial entity and works out a solution all by herself. Man’s
matter how much Foster wishes to be an amphibious animal he cannot defeat the laws of nature,
he must go out to breathe, he cannot be in the ocean for more than necessary. Perhaps, his
decision to remain an outsider was incited by unconscious force of water to drive away man and
his greed. Water and its biological characteristics create a space to bring together nature and its
Water shapes and is shaped by humans and their encounters throughout history (Linton
and Budds 5). It is through the agency of water that Foster is able to rebuild his detachment with
nature. It is also his early association with water, which shaped his intrapersonal relationship
with himself and with the world around him. This process of constructing and reconstructing
Works cited
Bibliography -
Govindrajan, Radhika. "4. Outsider Monkey, Insider Monkey: On the Politics of Exclusion
Linton, Jamie, and Jessica Budds. "The hydrosocial cycle: Defining and mobilizing a
My Octopus Teacher. Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed, Craig Foster, Netflix, 2020.